But it does so optimistically:

1. If there's an (already open) connection in the pool, it gets popped and used.
2. If there isn't a conn ready right away, a new conn is made.
3. When the thread is finished with the conn, it tries to push it into the pool.
4. If the pool is full (mine was max 10), the free conn is closed and discarded.

The 37 connections are far less than the total number of statements. ;) This is *testing* code, ma man.